Impact of insulation thicknesses of several types of thermal insulator on energy cost with respect to different climate zones in Morocco

• Published in: MATEC Web of Conferences Vol. 307; p. 1023
• Main Authors: Gounni, Ayoub, Mabrouk, Mohamed Tahar, Kheiri, Abdelhamid, El Alami, Mustapha
• Format: Journal Article Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Les Ulis EDP Sciences 2020
• Subjects: Brick construction; Climate; Cooling; Cooling loads; Cost analysis; Cost control; Energy costs; Heating; Insulation; Life cycle analysis; Life cycle costs; Liquefied petroleum gas; Numerical models; Polystyrene resins; Thermal insulation; Thickness; Morocco
• ISSN: 2261-236X; 2274-7214; 2261-236X
• DOI: 10.1051/matecconf/202030701023

In Morocco the thermal insulation of buildings envelop was not a common practice until it becomes obligatory since 2015 to meet the requirements of the Moroccan construction thermal regulation (RTCM) depending on six climate zones. The aim of this paper is to determine the optimum thickness of expanded polystyrene (EPS) and rock wool (RW) of walls constructed of brick for different Moroccan climate zones: Agadir (first zone), Tanger (second zone), Fes (third zone), Ifrane (fourth zone), Marrakech (fifth zone), Errachidia (sixth zone). A numerical model of a multilayered wall is developed to compute the annual heating and cooling loads. These loads are used as input to life cycle cost analysis using the energy and insulation costs. The liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and electricity are used as energy source, respectively, for heating and cooling. For each case, the calculation is carried out for annual heating and cooling loads and total cost including insulation and energy costs. Results show that the optimum thermal insulation depends on climate zones and insulation types. The lowest value of energy savings is obtained for climate zone 1 which are 289.55 and 300.55 dh/m² respectively for EPS and RW.